459 



every leaf, seven towers; every tower, seven 

 other things," and so on, almost ad iiifinitum. 



The seventh heaven of the Mahommedans, or 

 Ferdaus, corresponds with our Paradise^ but 

 they are not agreed as to which of the seven was 

 the one in which Adam was originally placed by 

 his Maker. The account of his fall cor' sponds 

 In the leifding particulars wiih that contained in 

 the Scriptures, although moch disfigured by fa- 

 ble. Adam is said to have been thrown down on 

 the i^^land of Ceylon, where he wandered about 

 for two hundred yearf . and subsequently repent- 

 ed. The floods of tears which he shed, swelled 

 into a small river, full of precious stones. God, 

 perceiving his repentance, forgave him his sins, 

 and he took a pilgrimage to Mount Orfa, where 

 he again found Eve, who had been cast into the 

 city ofJudah, which lies in Mecca in Arabia, 

 and commenced peopling the world. As from 

 Adam's tears all the precious stones were formed, 

 so from those of Eve sprung all fragrant spices. 



The death of Abel, or, as the Mahommedaus 

 call him, Kabil, is also evidently borrowed from 

 the Mosaic relation. The cause that induced 

 Cain, or Habil, to slay his brother, is however, 

 stated to be a desire to obtain possession of his 

 wife, instead of the non-acceptance of his sacri- 

 fice. 



It would be tedious to follow the Mahomme- 

 dans through the rest of scripture history, such 

 as Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac, &c. and 1 shall 

 therefore proceed to notice some of the Malayan 

 superatitioos. A very great belief in demonolo- 

 ev and witchcraft characterises the Malays of 



